The Emperor's Domineering Favor, the Evil Consort's Unparalleled Reign

The Ghost Realm was shrouded in thick black mist. Muran, carrying the Immortal-Slaying Sword, inexplicably burst in. Could it be that something major had happened in the Ghost Realm? Even if these barriers were visible, no one could break through them. His easy entry suggested that a fierce battle among the spirits was inevitable.

Before them lay Demon Ridge, a unique illusionary barrier of the Ghost Realm designed to protect against external enemies. Once a Spirit Realm person entered it, they would either die or be seriously injured. However, to enter the Ghost Realm's capital city, one had to pass through Demon Ridge first.

Upon entering Demon Ridge, Muran witnessed a truly astonishing scene.

A handsome general was cradling the body of a woman. Suddenly, he saw the black aura emanating from the general seep into the woman's bones. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the general's entire body was beginning to decay, revealing only white bones. Trees nearby were growing rapidly. He hadn't expected the woman's obsession to be so deep, to be absorbed to such an extent by this Demon Mountain Ridge! Once the trees were fully grown, she would surely die! No, that's not right, it was the general who would surely die! This obsession clearly belonged to the general!

The general, who was holding the woman, seemed to have noticed Mu Ran's presence. He turned his head around in a circle before fixing his eyes on Mu Ran's right hand. The Immortal-Slaying Sword in his right hand emitted a faint, cold light, and the general's expression was a mixture of joy and sorrow.

After a while, the general's body suddenly disappeared. Muran felt dizzy and her body seemed to lose control, tilting to the side. After a short while, the scenery in front of her reversed, and Muran saw a large bamboo forest. The bamboo forest was lush and green, and the wind fairy playfully brushed the treetops and stayed on the tree trunks, watching the young men and women deep in the bamboo forest with great interest.

Muran went around to the back of the woods and happened to hear the two talking.

"Su Lin, how about this? We'll live here from now on," the woman said softly, her eyes brimming with happiness. But the man beside her, called Su Lin, looked gloomy.

"Chiba, you've eloped with me, but what about the Wang family? They won't let this go easily," the man said in a deep voice, his tone tinged with sadness and helplessness.

Chiba's hopes were abruptly shattered by those words, and her eyes turned icy.

"I don't care, you know I don't care about anything, I just want to be with you. I don't want a pre-arranged life." Her voice became slightly hoarse towards the end, and the woman's face was somewhat pale.

Chiba clenched her fists stubbornly and said, "I will not marry into any family, no matter how many Wang families there are, as long as I, Chiba, am unwilling. I have taken a liking to you, so do you want to take me away?"

Su Lin looked at the stubborn girl in front of him, sighed softly, patted Qianye's head with his right hand, and said, "Okay, I'll take you away. We'll leave at noon tomorrow."

Chiba, who had just been dejected, held her head high. She reached out and hugged Su Lin tightly. Listening to Su Lin's heartbeat, her restless heart calmed down.

Su Lin's heart was churning with turmoil. How could he, a mere martial artist, possibly contend with the powerful Wang family?! Unconsciously, he loosened his grip on Qianye, his eyes sharpening. In an instant, the world seemed to change, and in the dim light, everything was swallowed up like smoke in the past.

Su Lin tilted her head slightly towards the depths of the bamboo forest. Mu Ran felt a chill run through her body; that resolute gaze sent a shiver down her spine.

That man had high eyebrows and thin lips. His handsome face clearly carried sadness. Suddenly, I saw his slightly high cheekbones and the bitterness hidden at the corner of his mouth.

Su Lin seemed to glance in Muran's direction before leading Qianye away in the opposite direction.

By the time Muran came to his senses, the two people in front of him were already quite far away. When Muran tried to leave their illusion, he realized that as long as their obsession remained, he could not gain freedom. Thinking of this, Muran decided to see what happened next. He walked in the direction the two had gone, walking for a long time before finally emerging from the deep bamboo forest, the town drawing ever closer.

It was past midnight when a group of soldiers walked down the moonless street.

Mu Ran saw Su Lin standing alone on the street. He murmured, "Qianye, wait for me." There were tears in his eyes, as if he had made a momentous decision.

The next day, Chiba waited from sunrise to sunset, clutching her bundle. People came and went at the city gate, some staying, some leaving. Voices, smiles—time seemed to stand still before her. Finally, the flame of hope in Chiba's eyes was extinguished completely as darkness fell. Chiba wept.

Muran felt something inside her crack, and it hurt terribly... A person's face appeared clearly in front of her.

This life isn't even over yet, and Muran is already looking forward to the next. If there is a next life, how wonderful it would be if we could meet again in an ordinary way, and live an ordinary life together…

The vendors packed up their stalls, the steamed bun shops closed, and the old night watchman, carrying a lantern and a watchman's staff, strolled over to Chiba's side.

His face was etched with the wrinkles of time, like tree bark embedded in his dark brown skin. He lifted the lantern and saw Chiba's tear-streaked face.

The old man was startled by Chiba's pale, lifeless face, but he still recognized her. He lowered his voice and said, "Isn't this Miss Chiba? What are you doing here so late at night? In times of war, Miss, you should go home. I heard that some people from the Ghost Realm have come to the vicinity. If you are afraid, this old man will give you a ride."

Chiba gave a bitter smile, shook his head, and kept his eyes fixed on the city gate. The city gate was closed; Su Lin wouldn't be coming again.

The old man looked at Chiba with a puzzled expression, sighed, put down the lantern, and with his right hand, took the wooden stick and struck the wooden plaque hard. The aged sound echoed through the alleyways.

"Rise at the second watch; the weather is dry, be careful with fire!"

"Rise at the second watch; the weather is dry, be careful with fire!"

"At the second watch, the weather is dry and the air is parched..."

……

Chiba's parents and servants arrived at the city gate as the moon rose.

Chiba squatted on the ground, watching her parents and servants approach her step by step. The smile from the daytime was gone from her pale face, and the tears in her eyes were nothing but the embodiment of despair.

That person didn't come.

Upon seeing her parents and clan, Chiba was utterly devastated. She murmured, "I still can't escape this terrible life, Su Lin, you lied to me!" With that, she picked up her bundle and walked out from the guards' encirclement. "I'm going home," she said. "Even if you leave, I will still go back to our home to find you."

As a result, the servants, like the darkness of night, swallowed Chiba's shadow, and Chiba went home, back to that cold, lifeless house.

Looking at Qianye's slender back, watching her thin clothes flutter in the wind, Muran felt an emptiness in her heart. After a long while, Muran murmured to herself, "It should be possible to find it again, Su Lin."

Later, Muran realized that what she had been thinking was just a dream.

In the days that followed, he saw Su Lin go to the battlefield, be riddled with poisoned arrows, and barely escape with his life.

On his deathbed, he heard the news of her marriage. He was probably filled with despair, but what was truly terrifying was that he ultimately did not die.

Because of that little misunderstanding, he went back, having fought countless battles, and returned home in glory.

He had tried to inquire about Qianye, but the sycophants around him said, "Who is Qianye? We don't know." He understood that Su Lin and Qianye were no longer there; now he was General Su, and she was Madam Wang.

The men who had arrested him and sent him to the battlefield were still there. He asked them, "Why did you arrest me?" They shook their heads, completely drunk. A slightly sober soldier said, "Because we saw you engrossed in reading the proclamation, and when we approached you, you happened not to run away."

Yes, you didn't run away.

In that world, chaos reigned, and the demons roamed freely. Men took pride in going to the battlefield to kill the enemy. However, some had wives and children, ties to tie them down, and feared going to war, afraid of not returning. Therefore, at such times, it was impossible to gather enough soldiers. Those seasoned soldiers went everywhere to conscript men; anyone with a little spiritual power would be taken to the army's martial arts camp for training and combat. Most men with families would flee at the sight of these soldiers.

But for some reason, Su Lin just stood there, letting those people drag him away, and he didn't run away. Su Lin couldn't remember when this happened. This forbidden memory was spoken by the soldiers from back then, and his heart felt as if it had been pierced by a sharp sword.

It hurts a lot, but it doesn't change the fact.

Su Lin gradually turned into a wisp of black smoke, and Mu Ran could not see his expression.

He smiled, as if comforting himself, and said, "I escaped, I escaped to the battlefield. But Chiba, Chiba didn't escape. She waited from sunrise to sunset, from warmth to death."

After Su Lin left, Chiba went to the Wang family alone. On her wedding night, people found her gradually cooling body in Chiba's dark room by lantern light.

“I only learned of her death much later, when I was preparing for my wedding. I was still wondering, what could make someone disappear into thin air? Much later, I learned that Chiba had changed her name to Shirin. Shi, Lin. Her maid said that before Chiba died, she made a wish. She said that in her next life she wished to be a leaf, born from love, and disappearing from love.” His voice grew softer and softer.

Yellow sand swirled, and there was no oasis in the desert; they had been trapped there for a long time. They had gone without food for three days and without water for two. In front of the sallow-colored military tent, a tall man had a long sword at his waist, a sword he hadn't used in a long time.

The emperor of the Mu Dynasty ordered the extermination of the alien Ghost Realm people. He was a general returning home, long past the chance to don armor, march into battle, and command the heavens. The battle was fierce, and the outcome was uncertain. It was said that three generals had already died at the front. They were young and talented, skilled in spiritual cultivation, and had never enjoyed a day of peace before perishing in the alien attack.

"Generals die in a hundred battles, brave soldiers return after ten years. General, why don't you go home? I heard you have a beautiful wife waiting for you to marry her." A soldier who had been by the general's side for many years asked in bewilderment. He didn't know why General Su would volunteer this time. This was a hot potato that others would avoid like the plague, but he had stepped forward.

Su Lin touched his silver armor, his eyes filled with yellow sand, while the poplars stood firm against the dry, fierce wind. A helpless smile forced a corner of his mouth. Over the years, he could never understand why he had run away back then. Only after years of fighting on the battlefield, covered in scars and accumulating merits, did he realize how unworthy Su Lin had been of Qian Ye back then.

He couldn't even give up his ridiculous pride for Chiba. In the end, we all hurt the people who love us the most.

"Yes, my beautiful wife... she's waiting for me, waiting for my triumphant return home." Su Lin smiled slightly, his voice bitter.

……

"Giddy up, giddy up!" Su Lin shouted angrily, mounted his horse, cracked the whip, and rode off into the distance.

"General, you...General!" The old soldier, his face grim, jogged a few steps behind the general and called out urgently. His face could not hide the vicissitudes of life, but all his strength was drained away the moment the general rode away.

"General, take care in this battle!" The old soldier couldn't keep up with the general. He knelt heavily on the ground, facing the sky, his body slowly leaning back. He was too tired...

General, you have departed in a cloud of dust. The mountain road is desolate, and the battle is shrouded in mystery. I fear your soul will never find peace...

Like a curse, his silver armor was stained with specks of red plum blossoms. He gripped his longsword tightly, his palms dripping with blood, tears welling up deep in his eyes but not falling, for there was still a hint of a smile in them…

Death is the best relief, but not the best answer.

Suddenly, he remembered that during the war between spirits and ghosts seventeen years ago, an army that was determined to fight to the death against the alien ghosts had mistakenly entered the Demon Man Ridge and disappeared.

So it was you guys all along...

"Greetings, Your Highness the Third Prince!"

Muran snapped out of his reverie to find Hou Ning, the young master, leading a team of experts standing before him. In his daze, he seemed to see Su Lin's shadow.

He wouldn't wait. Looking at the black snake-like lines on his arm, a cold smile played on Muran's lips. To hell with waiting! He was going to find Ying Li, even if he died, he would die on the road to finding her! All the suppressed melancholy vanished, and Muran strode forward…